(PS2-8) Associations of Mindfulness and Anxiety in College Students

Title: Associations of Mindfulness and Anxiety in College Students

College students are a population that are particularly susceptible to anxious tendencies, with 63.4% recently reporting feeling completely overwhelmed by anxiety in the last 12 months, through an annual survey (American College Health Association, 2018). Mindfulness is a technique in which individuals use a non-judgmental attitude to observe their current experience of the present moment and accompanying sensations. Previous research supports that mindfulness practice is associated with positive psychological outcomes, including anxiety reduction. The current study aims to explore the relationship between 1) mindfulness, 2) state and trait anxiety; and 3) level of general perceived stress experienced amongst individuals. Individuals will be recruited from Buffalo State University, a college with a diverse population including 26.9% identifying as African American/Black, 11.9% Hispanic/Latino, 5.14% Asian, 3.97% Two or More Races, 0.39% American Indian or Alaska Native, 0.0418% Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islanders, and 50.5% White College students (IPEDS, 2021). Participants will be randomly assigned to spend 10 minutes either watching an informational video on the benefits of mindfulness (control), or engaging in a 10-minute guided mindfulness meditation session themselves (experimental). Prior to the video, both state and trait anxiety levels will be measured among participants, along with their perceived stress levels. After the video session, individuals will be asked to complete questionnaires on their state-level anxiety and mindfulness. The goal of the study is to investigate whether an individual’s perceived stress level, or trait anxiety, will play a role in receiving the benefits of mindfulness meditation practice on anxiety. We hypothesize that mindfulness meditation will be associated with a significant increase in mindfulness scores and a decrease in state anxiety. It is also hypothesized that high stress will act as a moderator. To assess the hypotheses, a two-way ANOVA will be performed examining stress and mindfulness on anxiety. A strength of the study includes the strong support through past research on the relationship between mindfulness and anxiety levels, although previous studies have not focused as much on short-term and immediate effects, which could be particularly beneficial to college students in their fast-paced environments. A limitation of the study is that individuals that have no meditation experience may have a hard time participating in a 10-minute video, as opposed to a shorter amount of time. Through gaining a better understanding of varying psychological states and how they tend to be affected by coping techniques, such as mindfulness, professionals have a greater ability to implement personalized and fitting interventions for individuals in need.